Volocopter performs the first crewed eVTOL flight in France

On March 21, 2022 Volocopter completes a double pioneering victory by becoming the first eVTOL developer performing crewed and remotely piloted test flights in France. The crewed flights were part of a week-long test campaign dedicated to Urban Air Mobility. The goal? To give Volocopter and its partners – Groupe ADP and RATP Group – key ideas to launch the UAM in time for the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris in 2024.

Volocopter's full-scale prototype, the 2X, has already been used for successful test flights at Pontoise airfield, northwest of Paris, to measure the aircraft's noise emissions. Volocopter partners will use this data to shape the future of urban air mobility in Paris and the Paris region.

“We demonstrated our pioneering power once again here in Paris,” said Christian Bauer, Commercial Director of Volocopter. “By flying our aircraft in a manned configuration within an airport in Paris, we are directly proving to one of our launch cities that our aircraft will be a practical complement for airport-to-city connections. ”

Volocopter flew its electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft for the first time in France during the Paris Air Forum held in June 2021. Together with its partners, the company is preparing for commercial launch within 2 or next 3 years.

UAM refers to a subcategory of Advanced Air Mobility and how advanced aircraft  can operate within and around cities. Seen as a complement to existing transport options, UAM supports the development of environmentally friendly mobility solutions and will offer cities around the world a unique combination of urban multimodal transport systems.

The UAM test environment at Pontoise aerodrome responds directly to the challenges of this new form of mobility by evaluating the use of the UAM solution, its acceptability, regulations, technologies and industrialization. In addition, the aerodrome offers a real and secure aeronautical environment in a suburban area, 35 km northwest of Paris.